All towns have their quirks that make them unique and Olympia is no stranger to weird! When I moved here from Seattle in 2005, I found these Top 5 things to be different but these also make it fun to live here. (Be sure to check out my video.)
In no particular order, here is my Top 5 list of what makes Olympia unique, quirky, and weird!
Roundabouts
Roundabouts may not be weird but certainly how to drive in a roundabout is weird as drivers struggle with them. The City of Olympia is aware of this and they produced a flyer on how to drive a roundabout because it is apparently more complicated than it seems!
https://m.olympiawa.gov/~/media/Files/PublicWorks/Transportation/RoundaboutFlyer.pdf
And our Department of Transportation did a 10-minute video on how to drive a roundabout, which you just have to check out.
The Evergreen State College
Coming from a more traditional college background myself, The Evergreen State College seems a little weird to me.
The Evergreen State College is a public liberal arts college where students not only have the option of creating their own major but they are also not graded so they don’t have a GPA.
Their transcript is a description of their college experience, not their classes and grades. That’s certainly innovative but it still makes my weird list.
The college does have some famous alumni including Matt Groening, creator of The Simpsons, Macklemore the rapper, and Michael Richards from Seinfeld, to name just a few.
The college campus is beautiful and has some wonderful walking and biking trails I recommend. You will need to navigate a roundabout to get to the main entrance, just an FYI!
The Mima Mounds
The Mima Mounds located just south of Olympia is a natural preserve with these rare landforms or little hills that no one really knows what they are or how they were formed. Were they created by glacial ice, earthquakes or are they the work of gophers, sasquatches or even aliens? It’s definitely weird. This is a fun place to visit and I highly recommend checking it out. What do you think created these mounds? (Watch my video to see more photos of The Mima Mounds.)
Procession of the Species
The Procession of the Species is different than other parades you might have attended. This is a celebration of Earth Day and it’s to bring attention to the need to protect our planet and the natural environment. People dress up as animals and dance, sing and parade their way through downtown Olympia. Anyone can participate in the procession and that makes it even more fun.
One of the most anticipated groups who attend is Samba OlyWa, which is a drum and dance group. Every year they put on a memorable performance and their costumes, rhythm, and dance certainly can make anyone get inspired to join in. Samba OlyWa looks like total fun!
Here is a terrific video from Thurston Community Media of the 2018 Procession of the Species in Olympia.
The Monarch Sculpture Park
The Monarch Sculpture Park is such a cool park but qualifies to be on my weird list because of the wide variety of modern sculptures, artwork, and gardens AND its secret location. It is tucked away off of the Chehalis Western Trail. And that is the main way you access the park. There are a couple of parking spots closer to the park but really, you get there by the trail. It’s free and open to the public year-round.
New installations are always being added and it’s a great destination or just a nice pitstop for bicyclists and walkers.
Conclusion
That is my Top Five list of weird things in Olympia. Olympia is a town like no other but I like calling it home! I’m sure the locals can add to my list!
If you are looking to make Olympia your home, be sure to check out some of my other posts on my blogsite and my weekly videos on what it’s like to live in Olympia and everything real estate.
Video of the Weird Things in Olympia:
Too bad it’s going through gentrification. The city council and mayor, with their city planners want to create Tacoma…. grow, grow, grow without sustainability. I see homeless incampments growing along side high-end condo/apt developments. This is not cute and quirky. This is blaring income inequality with no solutions. Olympia needs fair city planning that respects citizens.
Hi Ann – thanks for your comments, and you’re right, Olympia is far from perfect but my forum here is to put focus on the more positive things Olympia has to offer. If Olympia isn’t for you and you are looking to sell your home, I can help!
Lack of leadership was not included? Allowing small businesses to be ruined downtown. Will never return due to the void in leadership. Many people financially ruined over the lack of leadership. And the incompetents are still getting paid?
Hi Honesty and Reality Guy – I’m sure you can understand that the theme of this post was to add some light and humor in a time that is challenging for many of us. I’m a small business and entrepreneur myself and I have certainly felt and will continue to feel the aftereffects of the pandemic.
I never thought of the roundabouts being unique, but you are right! There are a ton of them here (comparatively). We’ve been in Oly for a couple years now and haven’t heard of (or seen) the Procession of the Species or the Monarch Sculpture Park – we will definitely have to check them out.
I will be downloading the roundabout instructions!
Evergreen is a great choice for those who value creative learning and are willing to work for it. My child loved the education and culture on and off campus. They were hooked. They love Oly and own a small co-op business downtown.
I am impressed with the respect,advocacy, and “do something “ community that the downtowners give to the diverse population of Olympia.